| 摘要 |
A heat exchanger (10) having a plurality of longitudinally-extending tubes (16) disposed within a shell (12) includes an elastomeric end plate (18) and means (22) for compresing the elastomeric end plate (18) and expanding the plate in the longitudinal direction and internal vibration-damping baffle plates (28). Conventional metal heat exchangers of brazed construction are prone to cracking and failure. More recently, heat exchangers having an end wall assembly comprising an elastic medium disposed between movable pressure plates has been proposed. Among other problems, the movable pressure plates are required to have clearance holes for the free passage of tubes therethrough and are consequently severely limited to the number and density of tubes that may be accommodated in a heat exchanger of such a design. The present invention avoids the problems of the prior art by providing an end wall assembly for a heat exchanger (10) wherein an elastomeric end plate (18) is mounted under compression in only a direction transverse to the tubes (16) passing through the plate (18). The elastomeric end plate (18) is not restrained in a longitudinal direction with respect to the tubes (16) and as a result of the transversely-applied compression force, the end plate (18) is expanded in the longitudinal direction. The vibration energy absorbing baffle plates (28) have a hardness less than that of the tubes (16). The heat exchanger (10) of the present invention is particularly useful for severe-duty cycle, vibration-prone vehicular applications.
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